Dash finally taste home victory

Updated 10:45 pm, Wednesday, June 11, 2014

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Dash finally taste home victory

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Make note of this date in history – June 11, 2014. It's when the Dash finally won a home match.

The Dash defeated the Western New York Flash, 2-1, on Wednesday night, and when the final whistle sounded, a resounding round of applause and cheers broke out as the players made their way to the sideline.

Houston is on a three-game winning streak, and what's more impressive is that the team has now scored two more goals in five of its last six games.

Teresa Noyola, who scored the game-winning goal on a penalty kick, explained the team was putting too much pressure on itself to perform in front of its home crowd at BBVA Compass Stadium.

"It's definitely big to take the pressure off and to give us confidence that we can win here, at home, in front of our fans," the center midfielder said.

After missing an opportunity to score earlier in the game, Tiffany McCarty composed herself and found the back of the net in the 39th minute to put the Dash (4-7-1) on the board.

McCarty came into this game after a two-goal performance against Sky Blue FC on Sunday. The forward now leads the team in goals with four on the year.

"I had more time than I thought I did," McCarty said of her missed shot. "I saw my opportunity, and I took it."

The Dash are in the process of a midseason turnaround.

In the first six games, Houston scored more than one goal in only one game. Struggling on offense seems to be behind the team, however.

Coach Randy Waldrum said the Dash have faithfully been taking the 'one game at a time' approach, and it's starting to pay off as the team has hit its stride.

"We weren't able to [respond to goals] earlier in the year, and we're starting to find ways to be a little bit better organized," Waldrum said. "I can use a lot of different words probably; relief is one, from a slow start. But I think it's what we believed that we can do all along."

Houston and Western New York (4-6-2) played each other in Rochester, N.Y. on May 31, and the outcome was similar.

The Dash took down the home team, 2-1, to earn their second win of the season. Kealia Ohai and Nina Burger gave Houston its two scores, while McCall Zerbonie tallied the Flash's only goal.

Burger was unavailable for Wednesday's game, because she was with the Austria Women's National Team for World Cup qualifying matches. The Flash also played shorthanded, because Abby Wambach was preparing for a friendly against France with the U.S. Women's National Team.

Houston will face its third and final opponent of this week on Saturday when it welcomes FC Kansas City to BBVA Compass Stadium at 8 p.m.